A Year Into The Pandemic, Listeners Share Hopes For Community And Resiliency

We’ve been reflecting on life one year into the pandemic and all the changes that have come with it. We asked listeners to share their thoughts, and the submissions have been wide-ranging.

While some are still coping with loss and grief, others have told us about moments of resilience and hopes for the future.

Here & Now‘s Lisa Mullins shares the voices of listeners Jatniel Garcia of Coconut Creek, Florida; Jennifer Drayton of Sacramento, California; and Carlye Sayler of Leadville, Colorado.

Pandemic Reflections by Carlye Sayler:

One year ago, I was on the last trip to launch on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. We started the 21-day expedition one day before a state of emergency was declared and, without any cell service, we had almost no information for the first month of the pandemic. I wrote the following in the first few weeks of April last year. It’s striking to reread now, knowing how little we knew then and how many have died since.

“He just said three million Americans applied for unemployment last week,” Caroline whispered to me as we shouldered another heavy frame off the rubber and into a pile of gear that was